Magpie tale # 107 The Painting

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Once a week

 he went to the Art Institute

 to stare at her.

 The brushstrokes captured

 the eyes of his Isabella,

the woman of long ago

that he lost to Fernando.

He knew she would be 70 now,

not the raven haired beauty

captured before him

in the sensual values of light and dark.

A painting as large as his desire

that still burned him every calendar day.

Did she have a good life?

Did she have regret?

Did she ever think of him

in the dark silence of night

as he had of her?

He unfolded a handkerchief

on his lap,in front of the painting,

 lifted out a ring

and began to cry, as he had every week

since the painting appeared 

on the walls of this public place,

for all to see.

Once he painted it just for his eyes,

now everyone could see what he loved

and lost.

silent winter dawn
I heard a tufted titmouse
March chorus tune-up

Paint What You Love..Magpie tale # 106

Magpie Tale # 106



In the middle of the night genius struck. But he was out of supplies and needed to make a run to the store. He had the essentials: paper towels, a six-pack of Coke,and the ever important,cheap bottle of champagne.
He never intended to buy soup, oh no, he was a man of discipline...and soup wasn't on the list. But a sudden ache in his belly reminded him that he hadn't eaten all day. And the neat little rows of soup cans looked oh so much like obedient soldiers, their packaging like little uniforms, professing their allegiance to the ordinary, of his life, everyday.
He quietly tumbled 20 cans of soup into his cart. 

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I must begin again
push
myself away from this sword that hangs above me
soon enough it will let loose and find me
but for now why live in its shadow
take hold of what is this moment
garb myself with coat and mittens and boots
step outside and feel the day
get lost in snow and cold
hear the birds
watch the squirrels
be aware of breath
hear it speak
going down deep inside
to nourish every cell of my being
Then suddenly I am there
that I am so much more than this moment
brimming delicious
huckleberries
hello sunshine hippie chick
she is always and never the same
one hot mama of autumn awakenings
hello sunshine, beautiful dreamer
Live life with flair
let your inner artist emerge
...the bar has been raised
love the in betweens
celebrate love
live free
fire in her soul
you're unforgettable
embellished,
  I secretly wish I
file under M
..more moments
like these.

I never aspired to much
except to being a good human being of faith,
a good mother, wife
neighbor,friend,citizen
I took life as it came
and sometimes it was hard
but I kept aspiring
Love, my constant fuel
to get through some dark times

Later in life I discovered
I had a creative side...more than just
making the home a comforting, welcoming place to come place to
I called it sanctuary
and more than just providing nourishing meals for my brood
more than any of that
I rolled in creativity like a dog in muddy grass
a cat in catnip
rolled and rolled and rolled
but
I never aspired to anything else here either
just added a few more things to do to be happy

But low and behold
One day I became a grandmother
and everything changed
THIS
is what I aspire to excell in
grandmother hood....
I have found the land where I belong
and sadly, this land has its sorrow too
But I take life as it comes...
with an attitude of grace and love
and trust that God leads me
and does not fail me

Feeling low and sad lately
in my land where I belong
I got Skyped by a little smiling face last night
"Grandma! we're coming!...for 3 weeks!
and we're bringing Dutchie!
Dutch is the bulldog above...hee hee
What and when will I tell the kitties?

I needed this sunshine
and He was faithful to provide
now....to get ready
they are coming March 31!

 so much held inside
a life and death miracle
the days tick on so

Every child is a miracle

that knitting together of DNA

that sometimes

goes all wrong

and yet you love

and you suffer...,

for this miracle that is

yours

Magpie Tale # 105

MAGPIE TALE #105

He knew it was odd,

that it didn't belong there

on the side of the road

out in the middle of nowhere,

that they don't exist anymore,

and they were never lit with neon light.

But he wanted to believe

and he yielded to the temptation

to check it out and rode his bike along side of it

and stood there not knowing what to do.

And that's when he saw the prophet's image

in the glass just as the phone rang.

He leaned in and grabbed the black receiver

without thinking of the consequences.

"Hello," he said.

And as he did, the neon light began to pulsate,

and the booth shook and a howling sound sucked him inside.

He screamed, but no one heard him but

...the voice on the other end...

"Number please,"

He screamed and screamed and screamed as he felt his ear sucked into the receiver,

then his head, shoulders, hips and legs.

One last scream as the rest of him followed,

until he was no more.

The booth stopped shaking

 and the neons stilled themselves

...lighting up on the dirt road like a beacon in the night

 for the next believer.

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Now that I have my body moving again
stretching
breathing
now that I am in tune with it
a sensual feeling
I need to get the outside corrected
red polish on toes
gold hoops in ears
Euphoria wafting around me
I need to get some more blonde in hair
I went darker...low lights...for the winter
ick
I'm a blonde
and today I head downtown to see Tom
he'll fix me right up
and then I will return home
casting spells

joy

soup and short story

Some days you wake up

and know that it is going to be a good one

It is something inside of you, or least me

I know my troubles are not gone, but today, I will put them in a quiet place

and make soup.

Up at 6 AM this morning to see my husband off to work

to share a few precious moments of being

I started my day with a hot cup of coffee

and a book of poems.....

I fed the cats, the birds,the squirrels, and took a walk outside

in the garden to feel the day

on my skin, breath in its energy

The morning sun shone through raindrops that hung

on bare branches and dried flowers

oh such beauty in a drop

Then it was back inside

to make soup.

I chose this one because that is what I need to use up

...carrots and celery

and besides, it is one of my husband's favorites

When I am finished with this quick delish soup

I will hit the computer to finish writing a short story I have been working on

about a little girl that disappeared

...seems I can't get away from writing about little girls lately

oh well...that must be where the energy is....

ah energy.....I knew it this morning the moment I awoke

joy

oh...and the yoga is helping tremendously

I'm feeling younger....;)



a day of love

I spent Valentine's day at a funeral
an elder of my extended family
My sister-in-law took care of her mother faithfully
for 4 1/2 years.. when she had been stricken down by a stroke
Love.
The service was held in a Lutheran church
all the trimmings, as they say
Comfort.
The trip to the cemetery was short
and the walk to the grave site short also
so many elderly who braved the snow and cold to say goodbye
Humbling.
The meal afterwards, the usual: beef, chicken,mostacolli,mashed potatoes/gravy
hot rolls,warm beef vegetable soup and salad
Filling
Watching my brothers, one who just had open heart surgery...
tired and weak, but there. The other, legally blind,sick with a very bad cold, but radiating
goodness.
Watching my mother, worrying about them
Familial
Sitting next to my husband, squeezing my hand under the table
knowing my very thoughts of fragility of life
each of us suffering our own heartache to come
Love

Our first breath we take in from God
our last breath we return to God

 These moments
 birth and death
They are written in the book

blogger connections

many of them become friends

caring keyboard kin

To all of you who have reached

beyond the posts

I luv you

Be My Valentines



Magpie tale # 104

She dreamt that all the lives that she had led

lay under her like a heap of genocide

Naked on her bed, her hair spread out

like Medusa tendrils,

 a dismembered part of her

reached up and pulled her under

darkness swallowing her heart of stone

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 forgottern sadness
beholding joy with feathers
in an instant,gone

may my roots hold me

My gentle slide back into practise

 has had rather quick results

as far as my muscles are concerned

The pigeon pose/kapotasana, that I added last night

hit that piriformis just right

and I got some relief from my aching leg and hip

So feeling a bit cocky this morning

I added the tree pose/vrikshaasana

As expected I found that my right side is much stronger than my left

(as it is in my brain)
struggle

I think this is enough adding of poses

now to continue to show up

do

breathe

find balance

for my aching heart

oh, my aching hip flexors

 

Why is it so hard to practise

that which is good for us?

We never think about the harmful things

we do

like overeating

sendentary living

We never question those choices

we just do it

But the body is calling out for

practise

So this morning I took a step to recovery

I began with tadasana/mountain pose

omg....boy, I am beginning this not a minute too soon

30-60 hold...in proper form...ooo

next, onto

padangusthasana/forward bend/ finger to toe

big omg!

but the stretch feels so good

maybe the pain in my leg will lift

with this stretch

Now onto Child's pose,then Corpse

Okay...okay....it's a start

maybe if I do this every morning for a week

I will salute the sun

...if we ever get any

-joy-

 

magpie tale 103

truth can be unholdable
piercing and impaling
we reach for it
its shards slicing us down
to our held beliefs
sometimes to our brilliant graves



http://magpietales.blogspot.com/

holding your children
ability to carry
all their life of them

lonely evening walk
water vapor condenses
evening clouds of thought

Oh, how I love foggy nights

Last night before turning in, I glanced out of the bedroom window

and there it was....that mysterious atmosphere

 light and fog mingling like a magic show

If it hadn't been so late I might have put on my shoes and walked in it

enter a world often ignored or feared

I remember being afraid of it when I was small

expecting Dracula or the werewolf or Frankenstein

to appear

And it can be horrific to drive in it....just think about the horror in Florida this past week

But have you ever walked a city street
 surrounded by it?

It has an exciting still quiet about it

I could walk for miles



 this wonderful photo from google images
 by Daniel Seguin..Stranger in the fog





busy hands still mind

 iron glides across the board

pressing out my thoughts

My wonderful,loving,teddy bear of a brother

is recovering just fine

Doctor says it's all in his attitude

My sister-in-law said he sang into the nebulizer this morning

ha!....he's an old rocker from the 60's....heavy metal kind

and he's still at it....living his dream..singing and writing songs

I just know that his presence will touch someone there in the hospital that needs it

he's just that kind of a wonderful human being....

Thank you for your warm kind words and prayers for my brother and me

I needed them

Today I am going to iron

let my thoughts wander

where they will....

and where they want

if I just let go

Holding an iron is much like holding a pen

things happen

things get released

things are unearthed

but in the end, in a quiet room

filled with luxurious steam

smelling oh so clean

fabrics get the wrinkles out

whether it's my good tablecloth

or the heart aching fabrics of my life

..joy...



she drains into me
I collect and channel her
words into my sea